Wild self story starter

Here is a cool site a friend shared with me (thanks Marisa!)
Build your wild self http://www.buildyourwildself.com/ from New York Zoos and Aquarium.

Here you can design your human self and then add your favourite animal parts to create a whole new you - one with wings or a prehensile tail !

Here are a few links to blogs with how this has been used in the classroom...
http://sharpsav.com/blog/fresh-look-fridays-build-your-wild-self.html

http://www.whiteboardblog.co.uk/2009/02/build-your-wild-self/

http://www.edgalaxy.com/literacy/2010/10/4/build-your-own-wild-self-just-like-where-the-wild-things-are.html (this blog tags itself "cool stuff for nerdy teachers")

Two writing teachers blog

From the Stenhouse publisher's newsletter, here is a snippet about a teaching writing blog and new book which is available to preview online...

The blog post I saw used a picture book to illustrate ways for children to write the noises a cat and dog make beyond miaow and woof...
http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2010/10/21/beyond-meow-and-woof/

and here is a post about helping student writers to "show, don't tell"...
http://twowritingteachers.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/show-dont-tell/


Ruth Ayers and Stacey Shubitz, creators of the popular blog Two Writing Teachers, have translated years of wisdom on writing instruction into a cornucopia of practical advice in their new book, Day by Day. Ruth and Stacey provide encouragement and manageable, bite-sized "discussions" that teachers can review daily to continuously improve their practice.



This blog includes various quotes "words that are speaking to me" - here are a couple...

You have to be brave to take out that white sheet of paper and put on it words that could be evidence of your stupidity. — Sol Saks

I wanted to write literature that pushed people into their lives rather than helping people escape from them. — Harvey Pekar

Joy Cowley’s book for new writers

Celebrated children’s author Joy Cowley distils 40 years of experience as a writer in her new book, Writing from the Heart – How to Write for Children.

Writing from the Heart is essential reading for practising or intending children’s writers – and could well be used by senior students or teachers as a guide to “best practice” creating engaging and exciting works for children of any age. Joy covers plot development, discipline, dialogue, humour, presentation and editing, and there are chapters on the special genres of early readers, fiction for children and teenagers, poetry and plays.

Writing From The Heart is published by the Storylines Children’s Literature Charitable Trust and all proceeds go to assist Storylines in its work to promote children's books and literature. It is available from good bookshops and directly through the Storylines website http://www.storylines.org.nz
RRP $25.00

BBC Writersroom

Here is the BBC's Writers room - a place to encourage screenwriting, with examples of scripts, tips and inspiration for writing for television drama, comedy, and children’s programmes...
May be of interest to budding screen writers ?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/

Writing tips http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/writing/tips.shtml

Inspiration from successful writers http://www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom/insight/index.shtml

I read the interview with Ashley Pharoah, c0-creator of Life on Mars amongst other series, which ends with the question
What's the secret of a successful drama series?

Ashley: It has to be in the premise. It's not difficult to come up with an exciting episode one of series one, you have to work out what you're going to be doing in series three, episode six. And the great shows, the great British dramas, have never been about stories. Stories are just the delivery mechanism for the characters. I can't think of a single storyline for Minder. I can probably guess what the storylines of Minder were but what I remember is Terry and Arthur and how they interacted. No-one ever contacts us and says I love the story with the armed robber, or the one where they're trying to stop the jewellery heist, or the one on the train. They say I like the bit where Gene does this, or the bit where Sam crashes the car or the bit where Chris falls down a hole. And it's these character moments that people want to re-live, and the banter.

Creative writing "rules"

Shared by Jane Ryan, Howick College Librarian on the school library list serv:
"A little something I stumbled across that might inspire creative writers. Make sure to read part 2 as well. I particularly liked Ian Rankin's short sharp statements."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/feb/20/ten-rules-for-writing-fiction-part-one

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/feb/20/10-rules-for-writing-fiction-part-two